Residents to stay put in ‘unsafe premises’

KUALA
LUMPUR: SHOPLOT owners of Block A of the Selangor State Development Corporation
(PKNS) Flats in Jalan Kuching are in the lurch over a demolition notice issued
by City Hall recently.

They
want the council to justify the notice put up on one of the walls of block A
and B last Friday.

The
notice stated that the buildings are not safe and the building owner is
required to undertake remedial works, fence it, or demolish it within 14 days
of the notice issuance.

Failure
to comply would result in a penalty of RM250 imposed by City Hall every day
from the date the notice was issued.

Block
B is unoccupied and abandoned while there are only eight occupied shop lots on
the ground floor of Block A.

The
residential units above are all vacant.

A
shop owner Goh Toh Hoo, 70, said it was irresponsible of City Hall to put up a
small notice without consulting the occupants.

“They
(City Hall) should have served us the notice individually. None of the officers
came to see us regarding this,” said Goh who has been running a pet shop in
Block A since 1985.

“I’m
not even squatting here. I am the rightful owner of this property and have
title for the premises. If the building is demolished, where are we going to
move? We don’t know what to do,” he said.

Ramasamy
Kolandapayan, 77, who owns a sundry shop at the same block, said: “Even though
the building is not safe to be occupied as City Hall claims, they should have
approached us or notified us individually.

“I
am sure City Hall has the addresses of our homes and shops. Why can’t they mail
it to us?

“I
came to know about the notice after receiving a call from another owner. If
not, I wouldn’t have known about this.

“Fourteen
days is a very short notice. I have been doing business here for the past 23
years. Where are we going to move now? If they want us to move out to restore
the building or demolish it, then we should be provided with an alternative
place to go. I’m not moving out.”

He
also said it was not fair to him as he had made a one-year agreement with his
tenant.

“If
they (tenants) are asked to move out, then I would have to compensate them,” he
said.

Another
owner, Chan Kim Fah, 55, who has been running a used car business there since
1994, said he would neither move out nor pay the penalty.

“I’m
not doing anything against the law. I have the title for the premises and have
duly paid my assessment fees so I will not move out,” said Chan while showing
his land title to the media during a press conference recently.

The
residents had sought help from Segambut member of parliament Lim Lip Eng who
said he had sent a letter to City Hall requesting the council to arrange for a
meeting with the shop lot owners to find an amicable solution.

The
flats, consisting of 15 blocks, were developed by PKNS 30 years ago. Ten blocks
comprising 380 units were sold to the Defence Ministry in December 1975 while
another five blocks comprising 220 units were sold to the public.

Strata
titles for the properties were issued by the Federal Territories Land Office in
2008.

The
10 blocks — A, B, C, D, K, L, M, N, P and Q were occupied by Defence Ministry
personnel who moved out in 2007.

The
blocks have been abandoned and since then have been reported to be in a
deplorable condition.

Meanwhile,
a City Hall spokesman said it was a standard procedure to issue such notice on
premises deemed not safe.

It
said the notice was issued after receiving complaints on the condition of the
flats and to prevent it from worsening.

He
said the notice was first issued on Aug 7 but was later revoked and a new one
issued on Aug 15.